Had a bit of "brainwave" at the weekend and decided to change the rather heavily corroded metal plate that secures the 12N & S sockets to the towbar. I should have realised that the sockets would be just as corroded. I had to drill out the screws that hold the sockets to the plate, then virtually smash the sockets themselves to get at the screws that secure the wires.
Once I'd got that far, all I had to do was undo the rusty electrical screws ... and that's when the screwdriver slipped and went straight into the palm of my hand!
The upshot was that yesterday I decided to abandon finishing the job myself and took the car to a professional, who fitted new sockets, a new fixing plate, a new bumper protector plate and charged me just £35 for the whole lot. As Halfords wanted upwards of £9 per socket, that's a bargain, especially as when on testing the 12S it turned out that the live feed for the fridge wasn't working, and probably hadn't been working for a long time, as the original fitter hadn't fused it!
So, the moral is - DIY is a pain, and getting your towing rig tested regularly is a really good idea.
------------- * You never know where you're going 'til you get there...
To be honest, if you even considered getting the sockets from Halfrauds, you probably shouldn't have tackled the job in the first place.
I personally would have left the sockets on the plate and just cut the wires off as close as possible. The ends of the wires were probably corroded anyway and there is virtually no chance of undoing the terminal screws.
With the wires cut off, the sockets and plate can be discarded as one lump.
Quote: Originally posted by LegsDownKettleOn on 10/8/2010To be honest, if you even considered getting the sockets from Halfrauds, you probably shouldn't have tackled the job in the first place.
Only supplier close to me open late on a Saturday afternoon. It's true though that their prices are outrageous.
And yes, I now know what to do in future. And so do others reading this thread.
------------- * You never know where you're going 'til you get there...
I still prefer to have a go... I replaced my S&N for 13 pin euro and it was a peice of cake.
Got the parts for £3 from ebay, diagram off the net and after about 30 mins of fiddling and using angle grinder to remove rusty old 7 pin sockets, quick test with volt meter first and then the van, hey presto the job was done.
Although I found it fairly easy it can be tricky getting all the cables into a 13 pin euro socket. Not sure I would recommend it to everyone unless you are confident with DIY. Sounds like you got it at a decent price I was quoted £60 for my change.
Cheers
------------- If you Don't ask, you Don't get..............
Easter - Alton Towers
May - Aveniemore
Summer - South West London (theme parks all Around)
September - Not Sure
October - Blackpool (Yet more Theme parks and attractions
Life is a Roller coaster and we will be on loads this year...
just had a new 13 pin socket fitted to car plugged up to caravan and the fridge wont work wondered if you might have the wiring order for the caravan plug in case i have made a mistake
Did you try increasing the revs on the car, It will only run the fridge charge the caravan battery if the car battery voltage it above a set limit and being charged.
just had a new 13 pin socket fitted to car plugged up to caravan and the fridge wont work wondered if you might have the wiring order for the caravan plug in case i have made a mistake
A day of all things motorhome and campervan. The show is held both in the main indoor arena and across the grounds. Catering, hot drinks and food options are available. Easy access to the site and free parking included. Win one of five pairs of day tickets
Topic: 12N & S - a tale of woe
